Part 11 (1/2)

We're still trying to get back in...' She paused and a look of astonished disbelief flooded into her eyes. ' Jesus Maria Jesus Maria, you're joking!'

She put her hand over the receiver and said flatly, 'New York say they're picking up top-security UNIT doc.u.ments on the Internet!'

' Bozhe moj! Bozhe moj! What sort of doc.u.ments?' What sort of doc.u.ments?'

'Personnel records. They want us to shut down completely.'

'We can't shut down,' he snapped. 'Not like that. We don't know what damage it'll do. This guy's got a counter move for every situation. He could be leaving bombs and viruses all through the network.'

'They're frightened he'll breach the defence systems.'

'Ah.' Bonderev lit another cigarette, while Diaz argued with New York. Finally she put the phone down. 'They're going to shut down anyway.'

'We'll see,' he said slowly. 'Of course, if our friend got in through the back door...'

'Then why shouldn't we?' they chorused together.

They scrambled across the office to a spare terminal.

Bonderev began to laugh as he logged into the e-mail system.

'This I always wanted to do. Hack my way into the biggest global security system.'

'It's your own system,' commented Diaz.

'Even better! Anyway I inherited it, so it's not my fault.'

He was already pummelling his keyboard. Within seconds he was surfing. 'Look at that!' A series of menu windows was opening up already. 'I'm in. That's crazy.'

'Someone's going to have to rewrite the whole UNIT caboodle.'

Bonderev was grinning in shock. 'Oh, it's back to index cards for us.' He was in Overview by now. 'Our friend can certainly teach us a thing or two. This is much quicker than usual. Look, he's unzipped us like a banana! Torn right through.'

Overview displayed a graphic map of the entire network divided into coloured vertical blocks. It highlighted a white path that cut laterally across, jumping from system to system.

'He's using the liaison facility I set up,' announced Bonderev proudly. 'The one no one ever bothers with.'

'He's searching for something,' said Diaz.

'And he's squirting everything he touches out into the Internet. Maybe he's one of these open government crazies.'

Diaz nodded. 'Probably British then.'

'Look, it stops in Personnel Records. He's still there.'

'Can you get a fix?'

Bonderev was almost gurgling with pleasure. 'Ach, my friend. We have you.'

There was a sudden surge of power around them and the lights came on full. 'Oh, no,' Diaz hissed.

[image]

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Bonderev swore loudly. 'He's gone. And he turned the lights back on when he went.' He flopped back in his chair, disgusted. 'So close!'

'You weren't supposed to enjoy that,' she said.

The terminal pinged at them. A tiny smiley face began to flash in the corner of the screen. Bonderev groaned. 'I don't want an incoming message. I want to know who this b.u.g.g.e.r in the system was.'

Before he could even tap in a reject, the screen was emblazoned with a logo: a letter W with a spinning globe of the world balanced on the letter's central peak.

'What the Gorbachev is this?'

[image]

'I don't believe this,' complained Bonderev.

'I believe it,' said Diaz. 'I'm only surprised it hasn't happened earlier. Get rid of it.'

The screen had begun to flicker. It suddenly whited-out totally an angry glare as if the terminal itself had taken offence at her judgement.

But the seething white had a fascination too. It dragged you in. Got behind your eyes. Bonderev could feel it pulling.

With a clunk, the screen went dead.

'That's enough of that,' Diaz complained. 'b.l.o.o.d.y commercials. That's what I joined up to escape from.'

'You should have joined the Foreign Legion,' Bonderev said. He was gazing disappointedly at the empty screen. In his head, the little red cursor was suddenly scattering 'MIGRAINE' glyphs by the thousand. Spreading out, jumping systems. This lot seemed to be dancing a triumphant galop.